Friendly Fill-Ins

Hello, friends! We're ready for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, and we'd love for you to join us. My co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two fill-in statements, and I came up with the second two.


1. _________ always gives me a headache.

2. Ten years ago, I was _________.

3. _________ is the reason I haven't yet _________.

4. I prefer _________, but I also don't mind _________.

My answers are below in bold.

1. Garlic always gives me a headache.

(I realize I answered this fill-in quite literally. Migraines run in my family, and my dad, my sister, and myself all get them on occasion. My migraine triggers used to mainly be things like bright lights, mostly in the form of staring at a computer screen for too long. The older I get, though, the more foods have started triggering my migraines, and garlic is the main culprit. That's okay, though, because garlic was never something that I ate all that often anyway.)

2. Ten years ago, I was getting to know kitten Evan.

(Ten Mays ago, I met Evan as a 6-week-old kitten with hind limp paralysis. Now he's my 10-year-old sweet momma's boy, and I love him so much.)

3. Lack of time and energy is the reason I haven't yet finished some of my creative projects.

(I have writing and other art projects, some of which I've mentioned here on our blog before, that just never seem to get fully finished. They especially get neglected when my full-time job gets crazy. I'm in a constant battle to master the art of work-life balance, so that my personal endeavors that mean a lot to me don't get put on the back burner, and one of these days I will succeed.)

4. I prefer chocolate desserts, but I also don't mind vanilla or fruity baked goods.

(Except for certain pies, my dad and sometimes my sister are the kind of people who only want desserts of the chocolate sort. While I also love chocolate and will always happily eat such a dessert, I'm more like my mom and will pretty much eat any flavor or type of dessert. I'll be more than glad to take an extra brownie or chocolate chip cookie off of your hands, but I'll also happily take those lemon squares or that blueberry cobbler if you've got it. I have no idea why this is the answer I went with, but there you go.)

Now it's your turn!

To add your link to the Friendly Fill-Ins Linky list, just click HERE!

You can also click on the badge below to add your link.

You are also welcome to complete the fill-ins in the comments below,

or in the comments on Ellen's blog, 15andmeowing.

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Are you ready for your Eddy fix? Well, don't expect to see this girl's face or anything crazy like that, because she's busy watching birds in the trees. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

Happy Friday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

Today's summer safety tip is a bit of a grooming reminder. While it is of course more than okay to regularly trim nails, brush, or even lightly trim your cat's or dog's coat, keep in mind that shaving them in the summer can have negative effects. Just as our cats and dogs need their coat to stay warm in the winter, they also need it to remain cool in the summer. This is because cat and dog coats not only insulate warmth in the winter, but that furry coat also insulates cool air in the summer.

That's not all, though. Remember our discussion on sunburn yesterday? Well, shaving our furry cats and dogs can cause their skin to be more exposed to the sun, which of course can result in sunburn during these hot, sunny months. Sunburn, as we said yesterday, can lead to painful skin issues as well as potential skin cancer, and no one wants that.

At this point, we'll go ahead and mention that, in some cases, some semblance of shaving in the summer might be necessary for the comfort or health of your kitty or pup. Cats and dogs with extremely thick coats might need their fur thinned out in some way in order to stay comfortable in the heat of summer. In addition, some furbabies also need certain types of shaves for medical reasons, such as if they are unable to groom and need mats removed or prevented. My own Evan gets regular sanitary shaves all year round due to his hind limb paralysis and urinary incontinence, so that's just one more specific example. All in all, cats and dogs should only be shaved in significant ways in necessary cases. And, of course, if you have questions on this topic of grooming and skin care in the summer, or any time of the year, do discuss it with your veterinarian.